Pubdate: Mon, 02 May 2016
Source: Province, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2016 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact:  http://www.theprovince.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/476
Author: Jim Bronskill
Page: 15

THOSE MUNCHABLE MARIJUANA GOODIES POSE HEALTH RISKS, FEDERAL PAPER SAYS

OTTAWA - Bite-sized marijuana goodies such as candies and cookies 
pose "significant risks" to children who might accidentally swallow 
them, warns a draft federal discussion paper on pot legalization.

It flags the public safety concern as one of the many obstacles 
Canada must negotiate on the path to regulating the drug, drawing on 
tragic lessons from Colorado.

Justin Trudeau's Liberal government says legalizing marijuana will 
keep pot out of the hands of children and deny criminals the profits 
of shady, back-alley dealing.

However, the December draft paper, obtained by The Canadian Press 
through the Access to Information Act, notes marijuana is available 
in many different forms - including some especially attractive to 
youngsters - in a number of the jurisdictions that have legalized regimes.

The Liberals plan to introduce legislation next year to remove 
marijuana consumption and incidental possession from the Criminal 
Code, and create laws to punish more severely those who provide pot 
to minors, drive while under its influence or sell it outside the new 
framework.

The government intends to set up a task force soon with input from 
experts in public health, substance abuse and policing to design a 
new system of strict marijuana sales and distribution.

In the United States, Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, Washington and the 
District of Columbia permit recreational marijuana use by those 21 
years or older.

Some 45 per cent of Colorado's marijuana sales involve edible forms 
such as food, drink or pills, according to the U.S. Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention.

Two years ago a man in Colorado ate an entire cookie containing 65 mg 
of THC - the principal psychoactive element in cannabis - even though 
the shop clerk advised him to divide the treat into six servings.

An inexperienced drug user, the man didn't realize it takes time for 
a high to kick in when consuming pot in edible form, and he kept 
gobbling the cookie. That evening he jumped to his death from a 
fourth-floor balcony.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom